


Souvenirs

by Jbee



Series: Gates of Askr: Year One [25]
Category: Fire Emblem Heroes, Fire Emblem Series
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-16
Updated: 2020-06-16
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:07:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24742042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jbee/pseuds/Jbee
Summary: Folk tales and keepsakes are always a welcome addition to Kiran's growing collection of Askran memorabilia. But tokens of the past can also stir up lost memories for those that come across them.
Relationships: Plumeria/Líf/Summoner | Eclat | Kiran
Series: Gates of Askr: Year One [25]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1703545
Kudos: 5





	Souvenirs

**Author's Note:**

> This series is a collection of short stories driven by the FEH Subreddit Weekly Writing Prompts, June 15, 2020. "The second Dökkálfar Plumeria visits the Order of Heroes."

“Awwww This is perfect for my collection!” Kiran cried, picking up a small plush squirrel with wings and antlers. “I’ll take one please!” she told the merchant.

“Aren’t you a bit old for that?” Gaius asked, raising an eyebrow as he watched Kiran browse the local market.

“Says the grown man with the teddy bear lollipop.” Kiran shot back, as she handed over her coin in exchange for the item. “besides it’s just a souvenir. It’s not like I’m going to sleep with it… much.” she gave the stuffed animal a squeeze and smiled.

The heroes had been traveling continuously since Sem, only stopping to make camp and rest. They were only a week away from the castle now and if they kept their current pace they would be home in a few days. However, they needed supplies and the heroes convinced Cherche, their captain, to let them wonder around the market for a few hours that morning.

“A souvenir?” Henry asked admiring the strange toy in Kiran’s arms.

“Yeah, like a memento you get from a place you’ve been. In my world people tend to collect them while traveling, kind of a way to show people where they have gone, or remember their past.” Kiran tried to explain, “I have been trying to collect something from every place I’ve been to in Askr, and you know what’s pretty neat, most towns here have some sort of folktale or creature they associate with, so they sell souvenir related to their local legends!”

Kiran always looked forward to hearing the local tales when she was able to travel across Askr. Alfonse had given her geography and history books, but It was the folk stories that stuck with her, and she enjoyed remembering them when she looked at the items she collected. “For example, there is this one town that sells these scary looking dolls. The local legend is that it’s the spirit of a girl that was trapped in a well.” Kiran did her best to sound sinister, wiggling her fingers and making ghostly noises. “They say the girls ghost is so lonely it will drag any child that’s caught wandering the streets at night back to the well to share the girls watery grave!”

Henry giggled, “I would like to visit that town someday. Ghosts are hard to come by.” He smiled after hearing the tale.

“Well it’s not real, it’s just something they tell their kids.” Kiran laughed, “Anyways, I think I have a gift for everyone now. I have guide on southern Askr flowers and herbs, a few boxes of these local dried fruits,” she stopped, looking in her bag, “Oh and I found this pet rock for Ranulf! They accidently gave it two different coloured eyes, so I got it for half the coin! I think he will get a laugh out of it.”

“You two are pretty close?” Cherche asked, joining the group after talking to a few vendors.

“For sure! I mean, don’t get me wrong I like all the heroes in the Order, but most know each other already and have their tight knit groups. I found it pretty hard to fit in at first.” Kiran replied with a shrug, she remembered her first year in Askr had been rough. Everyone had been nice, but she never really connected with anyone, she just felt like she was going through the motions. “Ranulf was different, I’m just able to relax and be myself around him.” She smiled when she told them that, this year things changed. She took part in more activities, bought her own home, and even started training to help fight beside the heroes she summoned, and he had been a large part in pushing her out of her comfort zone. “He’s a great friend.”

“Maybe more than a friend?” Gaius smirked, nudging Kiran shoulder, “Come on, you can tell us.”

Kiran paused for a moment, and started laughing, “Yeah, that’s not happening. I mean, I’m not exactly his type, and even if I was, I have one rule.” She told them with confidence, “No heroes, full stop.”

“What!? Why?” Gaius exclaimed, he was the first to ask, but it was clear the others were just as curious.

“It just seems, I don’t know, too complicated.” Kiran shrugged, “I mean what if we broke it off? I would still have to work with them. You can’t tell me that wouldn’t be awkward.” She was no stranger to what happens when relationships fall apart, and she did not want to risk anything like that happening in Askr. “Or what if they wanted to go back to their own world, what would happen then? Also, I’m not a hundred percent sure I won’t go back to mine.” She added sadly, she knew sooner than later the harsh reality of the world catches up to you. “It’s just better to steer clear!”

“I think that is a very sensible rule Kiran.” Cherche smiled, and placed her hand gently on the summoner’s shoulder.

“Thank-you Cherche.” Kiran nodded, she knew most heroes would think her rule was pointless, many had already paired up themselves, but she was having a hard time believing there would ever be a happy ending. She gasped, “Oh my gods, look at that one!” Kiran cried when she saw the biggest, fluffiest squirrel with wings and antlers, running over to hug it. _It’_ s _better to fill my shelf with a collection of good memories then broken hearts.  
  
  
_

* * *

_Disgusting. Why did I have to come here again?_ Plumeria thought, moving through the vail, a path she traveled many times this year, more times than she wanted. She felt warm and light as she fluttered in her realm, and despised the feeling when she had to crossover. _It’s one thing to put up with the mortals’ tasteless dreams, but quite another to have to physically touch their realm._

Plumeria shuttered when she reached the shadows of the summoner’s room, stepping through the veil and into the mortal realm. Her toes touched the stone floor, and goosebumps formed on her arms. She felt heavy, and cold here, to fly too long was exhausting. _I wish I didn’t mention what I heard in that monster’s sick dream,_ she cursed herself, _I would not have been sent here to find more information_. She wanted to be home, to be warm and comfortable in Dökkálfheimr. Home, back with her Lady Freyja.

She wandered about the summoner’s room, stopping at the writing desk, and shuffled through a few loose papers, leafing a few pages of the ledgers that sat there. Plumeria knew what she heard that night. She remembered it clearly, the way he held her and whispered in her ear, those sweet moments before he realized she wasn’t the summoner. She shook her head, trying to forget those feelings and focus on the task that brought her here. _He asked Kiran to tell him her true name,_ she wondered _,_ the summoner they had been charged with watching months ago was hiding something, _there must be a clue here, a letter, a message, anything that might mention her name_ , she thought, _why would she keep such a thing a secret?_

Plumeria turned, her eyes slowly looking around the room and finally falling on the bedside table. A smile crept across her lips. Her delicate wings twitched as she made her way to the table, pulling out the top drawer and dumping its contents on to the bed. A pink leather bound journal, a hard flat pastry wrapped in a napkin, and a small black velvet pouch. She raised her eyebrows, Plumeria was all too familiar with these types of pouches, she picked it up, pulling at the drawstrings. “Let’s see what sort of activities our dear summoner is interested in.” she smiled, as she removed what was inside the pouch.

She stared at the rectangle object that slid into her hand from the bag, her reflection on the smooth glass surface stared back at her, and she furrowed her brow, she had never seen anything like this before. Plumeria turned it over, the small charm dangling from the corner. _What sort of toy could this be?_ She wondered, _who is this summoner?_ Looking up in frustration her gaze landed on a creepy doll sitting on the shelf, the small hairs on the back of her neck began to rise. _No, who WAS the summoner before all this?_

Plumeria held her breath as she stared at the dolls long yarn hair and sad button eyes. _We have all the answers, we just need to dig further back in her memories_ , she thought, as she picked up the doll.

“This doll,” Plumeria whispered, she felt drawn into the darkness of its eyes, “why does it feels so familiar.”

_“Mother? ...Mother?!”_ a child’s voice softly called out from the darkness.

She gasped, “What was that?” her voice quivered, “That voice… this doll.” Plumeria shivered, and closed her eyes, why was it so much colder now in the room, the sound of water dripping echoed off the stone walls of the bedroom.

_“It's so dark here... Please, help me...”_ the child’s voice cried out from the shadows, _“I need you...”_

Plumeria collapsed to her knees, her head pounded and she thought she heard the sound of a door unlock and opening. No! That’s the sound of a lid closing! “Mother, please don’t leave me…” she whimpered, clutching the doll in her arms.

“Tell me your name.” He whispered, an echo from that night in the monster’s dream again, his question kept haunting her. “Tell me who you are.” he asked, his voice growing angry.

“I don’t remember.” Plumeria quietly said as she hugged the doll, “I have always been álfr.”

“Álfr? Tell me why you’re here.” He growled, and Plumeria felt cold steel glide across her neck, “What do you want with Kiran?”

She gasped, her eyes flickering open. _He is no memory_ , Plumeria panicked, turning to see that monster’s face again, his ghastly grin, with cascading blue mist, and red piercing eyes looking down on her. She used all the strength she had to fly to the far corner of the room, narrowly missing being impaled by his blade. “How did you know I was here?” she demanded, crouching down upon top of a tall shelf.

“I could smell your rot from the corridor.” He turned to face her slowly, “So this is what you really look like. Álfr, you said? Where are you from?”

Plumeria grinned from her perch, “I would never tell a beast like you.” She hissed, reaching for a vile of nectar on her belt, “Perhaps I should have your dear friend David finish what he started!” she cried leaping down from the shelf, taking flight before hitting the floor and throwing the vile of nectar at his face.

He swung his sword upward, using it to block the bottle of nectar, the vile shattered against the blade and the sweet liquid inside exploded in a plume of gold smoke. “You will tell me what I want to know!” he cried as he lunged towards her, “What are you looking for?”

She produced her Flower of Plenty, using it to cast a large ball of thorny vines and launching it at her target. “We have everything we need now.” She smirked, as the ball’s tendrils wrapped around everything it touched, digging their thorns in and giving her the opportunity to escape within the shadows. She was safe in the vail, he could not follow her here. _I must tell Lady Freyja that we should explore the summoners past further_ , Plumeria thought looking down to see she was still clutching the doll from the room, _perhaps we can find more in her early memories._

* * *

Líf cut through the vines that bound him, the thorny plants withered and turned to ash as his blade sliced through. He reached the shadowy corner that the witch disappeared into, only to have his momentum carry him hard into the solid stone wall. “No! Damn it!” he cried, smashing his fist against the wall. Groaning he turned back to the empty room. _She was real, it wasn’t just a dream_ , he thought, but _what was she looking for?_

He made his way to the scattered items on the summoner’s bed. “Why would she take interest in this, it’s just junk...” he stopped, something caught his eye on Kiran’s bed. _That thing_ , he eyes grew wide, _what did David call it? F-fawn, fone?_ He shook his head, _shit, I don’t remember, it was so long ago._

Líf picked it up, it was cold and lighter then he thought it would be, _David kept it on him where ever he went, said it was a habit,_ he recalled memories of his late summoner. _David would pull it out whenever he thought no one was looking_ , Líf thought to himself as he sat on the edge of the bed, running his fingers across the metal sides, _but I was looking. I was always watching and when he caught me with it he showed me what was inside._

He remembered being in awe of David when he made the thing come to life. Communication, knowledge, pictures so clear, captured not by human hands, but a machine. It preserved David’s past accomplishments, travel and even food. _I didn’t understand it at the time, but I do now._ “It’s a record. An archive of her life before Askr.” He whispered, tapping the glass surface, deep in thought.

He quickly turned to clean up the scattered items across the bed, tossing them back in the drawer. Líf slid the device back in the pouch and pulled the drawstrings tightly close. He starred at it as he held it in his hand, sighing deeply when he finally tucked it into a hidden pocket within his armor. _What if the witch comes back_? he asked himself, _I can’t risk someone else finding it. I will return it when I figure out what’s going on with this… this álfr,_ he convinced himself, before placing the drawer back, _and if I have it with me, I might just remember more from that time with David, and how to unlock its secrets._

End


End file.
